Dr Oz: Acuball, Biodots, Gua Sha: Alternative Health Must Haves

Dr Oz: Alternative Health Must Haves

Dr Oz’s show on 10 Revolutionary Alternative Health Must Haves introduced us to some of the latest and greatest Alternative Medicine Treatments including: a Pumpkin Seed Powder Drink, Biodots for stress, Bacopa Monnieri for memory, Gua Sha for back pain, a Thai Massage for flexibility, an Acupuncture Facial for glowing skin, Chi Nei Tsang for IBS, Fennel Seeds for gas and bloating, an Acuball for back and neck pain and who could forget Doctor Oz in a bathtub full of ice, because an Ice Bath relieves joint pain and inflammation. Here are some of my own thoughts and research on these 10 Alternative Health Must Haves. If you have tried any of these, please leave a comment below sharing your experiences as well!

Dr Oz: Pumpkin Seed Powder Drink

Dr Oz’s first Alternative Health Must Have was Pumpkin Seed Powder, which helps you to sleep better at night. The reason that Pumpkin Seed Powder seems to work so well for Insomnia is because it contains Tryptophan, which is the same ingredient found in turkey that makes so many of us sleepy after our big Thanksgiving Meal. Doctor Oz’s Pumpkin Seed Powder Smoothie was made by combining 1/2 cup of Pumpkin Seed Powder, 1/2 cup of low fat milk (or water), and honey to taste. Pop all of these ingredients into your blender and blend until smooth.

Dr Oz: Biodots Stress Thermometer

Dr Oz’s second Alternative Health Must Have was Biodots, which are these amazing little dots made out of Liquid Crystal Indicators that can monitor your skin’s temperature. Biodots change color based on how stressed you are, so you know when you should take a few minutes for yourself to calm down. A couple of other interesting facts – Biodots were created by Robert Grabhorn, who originally called them Mood Marks (cute name!).

Dr Oz: Bacopa Monnieri for Memory

Dr Oz’s third Alternative Health Must Have was Bacopa Monnieri, which is an herb that boosts your memory. According to a study done on Brahmi, another name for Bacopa Monnieri, people who took the herb had a much better ability to retain new information. The study, done by the University of Wollongong in Australia, looked at 76 adults between the ages of 40 and 65 years old and found that Bacopa Monnieri decreased the rate that the adults forgot newly learned information. Sounds promising!

Dr Oz: Gua Sha for Back Pain

Dr Oz’s fourth Alternative Health Must Have was Gua Sha, which means “to scrape away disease by allowing the disease to escape as sandy-looking objects through the skin” or “to scrape away fever” in Chinese. Gua Sha, also called Spooning or Coining, is an ancient medical treatment that could give you some Back Pain Relief. A Gua Sha treatment generally involves applying pressure to lubricated skin repeatedly using a device with a smooth surface, such as a ceramic Chinese Soup Spoon, a metal cap or even jade. Interestingly, in Chinese Medicine, Gua Sha is used to treat a wide range of ailments including back pain, fever, fatigue, asthma, fibromyalgia, headaches, food poisoning and digestive problems. Doctor Oz had an Acupuncturist demonstrate how to do Gua Sha on a volunteer, and her back became very red but she said that it felt great. During the TV Show, they wrote on the screen that the Acupuncturist’s name was Dr Daniel Sciubba, but after googling that name, I am not sure if that is really correct.

Dr Oz: Thai Massage

Dr Oz’s fifth Alternative Health Must Have was a Thai Massage, which boosts your Relaxin hormone and increases your flexibility. A Thai Massage differs from a regular massage in that it tends to focus mainly on stretching and deep massages. Also, oil and lubricants are generally not used in a Thai Massage. Since yoga-type stretches are often involved in a Thai Massage, your flexibility improves as one of the benefits.

I’m wondering the same thing as berenice – what kind of pumpkin seeds for the powder recipe? I’ve looked and all I can find are roasted and salted, and I’m sure it can’t be that. If anyone knows, please share.